Warriors: Starlight
by Purple Eyed Cat
Summary: Based on the Warriors series by Erin Hunter. Takes place after the end of Midnight. BrambleclawSquirrelpaw pairing. If you haven't read Midnight, don't read this!


Disclaimer: I own none of this. It all belongs to Erin Hunter.

A/N: With all these Warrior fics, I would have thought that someone would write one based on The New Prophecy: Midnight. Since I haven't seen one, I decided to write one myself. Don't read this if you haven't read Midnight!

A/N 2: I dedicate this fic to my friend Dark Unicorn Lurking, as she prompted me to write this story.

Pairings: Brambleclaw/Squirrelpaw, with a side of Stormfur/Tawnypelt and Feathertail/Crowpaw

Happy Readings!

_Purple snow-capped mountains rose in the distance, beyond the snow covered meadows and hills. Brambleclaw struggled against the deep snow, trying to make his way across the snow laden meadow. _

_In the shadow of the mountains, Brambleclaw noticed dark shapes begin to appear. As the dark brown tom continued to make his way across the meadow, the dark shapes began to take on the familiar forms of cats._ But how, _Brambleclaw wondered,_ could cats live in this cold, barren place? _The questions, however, were pushed from his mind as a fierce wind began to blow, driving ice and snow into his face. _

_Brambleclaw continued on, desperate to find some shelter from the wind that bit and tore at his fur, from the bitter cold that was paralyzing him. Finding himself at the foot of a hill, Brambleclaw began his climb upward, leaping over snow drifts, doing his best to ignore the driving wind. _

_Head down, ears flattened, he headed into the wind. He leapt, and sunk into a drift. Jumping out of the snow and shaking himself off, Brambleclaw hesitated, listening for other sounds above the howling wind. _

_A gust of wind caught him off-balance, and he tumbled backwards. Yowling in surprise, the cat landed in a snow bank, and was immediately submerged, snow clogging his mouth and nose. The cold seeped into his pelt, and he sputtered, trying to dislodge the snow._

_As the cold swept over him, Brambleclaw struggled furiously, but to no avail. He struggled, but lay limp, realizing he couldn't do anything else. The cold overcame him, and he felt it settle into his bones, paralyzing him…_

"Brambleclaw! Brambleclaw!" Brambleclaw opened his amber eyes and looked up. Squirrelpaw was staring down at him, paw raised to prod him.

The dark ginger she-cat looked down at him. "You were yowling in your sleep." Her green eyes turned from worried to inquisitive in a heartbeat. "Did you have another dream?" She asked, eager.

Instead of answering her, Brambleclaw looked around. Squirrelpaw's nest of bracken was disturbed, as if she had been moving around during the night. Next to her empty nest was Tawnypelt, curled up and watching the two ThunderClan cats, green eyes amused.

Across the cave floor, the twin gray forms of Stormfur and Feathertail were curled up together, and next to them…Bramble shook his head, puzzled.

"Where's Crowpaw?" He shot at Squirrelpaw, who seemed surprised that he was addressing her.

"He was gone when I woke up," Squirrelpaw told him, flicking her ears, uncomfortable under his strong amber gaze.

"He probably went out to get a drink or make dirt." This reassurance came from Tawnypelt. Brambleclaw nodded in agreement. "He probably did."

At the sound of their voices, Stormfur stirred, blinking sleepy amber eyes at them. He stood, stretched, and padded over to Tawnypelt. He nudged her affectionately, then asked, "How's the bite?"

Tawnypelt purred, replying, "Much better. The burdock root is helping."

Stormfur purred, amber eyes bright. "Are you up to a hunting patrol?" Tawnypelt nodded, getting to her feet. Stormfur moved to steady her, but she warned him away with bared teeth. "I am not a kit," she snapped, and Stormfur backed up a step, nodding in answer to her outburst.

The light gray form of Feathertail appeared beside her brother, blue eyes wide. "Where's Crowpaw?" She asked urgently.

Brambleclaw answered her. "I don't know," he admitted, "he was gone when I woke up."

Feathertail looked from cat to cat, looking for an answer, but each cat indicated that they had not seen the missing WindClan apprentice. "So he's been missing?" Feathertail asked, and as if in reply, a familiar voice asked, "Who's missing?"

All five cats spun around as a gray-black tom padded into the cave, carrying a rabbit. He set the rabbit down as his blue eyes scanned the group. "Who's missing?" He repeated, puzzled. Feathertail padded over to him.

"Crowpaw, where were you?" She asked, blue eyes worried. Crowpaw gave the silver she-cat a reassuring lick.

"I was out hunting." He told her, blue eyes reproachful.

Brambleclaw bristled, annoyed with how this apprentice as acting. He didn't realize Squirrelpaw had pressed up against him until she hissed, "Calm down. He didn't mean it."

Brambleclaw looked down at her, surprised that this prickly apprentice as taking the other cat's side. Amber eyes met green, and Brambleclaw felt his fur prickle along his spine and grow hot. Breaking away from her gaze, he turned to the matter at hand.

"Crowpaw, what were you doing?" He asked the errant black tom.

Crowpaw bristled at Brambleclaw's tone, but answered him anyway. "I told you, I was hunting," the tom insisted, indicating his rabbit.

Brambleclaw sighed, letting the mater drop.

Stormfur stepped forward, Tawnypelt at his side. "Brambleclaw, Tawnypelt and I are going hunting." Brambleclaw nodded absently.

"Take Feathertail and Crowpaw with you," he ordered, ignoring Squirrelpaw's squeak of protest.

Crowpaw bounded out of the cave, Feathertail at his heels. Stormfur followed his sister, but Tawnypelt lingered, touching her tail to her brother's shoulder before padding out of the cave after the other.

Squirrelpaw watched the other leave in silence, but the second the tortoishell had disappeared, she bounced up to Brambleclaw. "Why didn't you let me go hunt with the others?" She demanded, green eyes flashing.

Brambleclaw looked down at her, and Squirrelpaw stared right back, defiant. "You are going to patrol with me," he told her. He padded over to the cave entrance, and when he didn't hear pawsteps behind him, he turned back.

Squirrelpaw stood where he had been, green eyes curious and defiant. "Why?" She demanded, and Brambleclaw sighed softly, impatient. Once again, the urge to rake his claws into her ear overcame him and he unconsciously unsheathed his claws.

Squirrelpaw glanced at his claws and then met his eyes with her own, and Brambleclaw felt the urge fade, to be replaced by the prickling feeling. He looked at her, and felt a sense of pride in her spirit.

"Do you remember what Midnight told us?" He asked.

"Yes," Squirrelpaw retorted, still not moving from where she stood.

"We need to know this territory if we're going to survive," Brambleclaw told her, "and to do that, we need to patrol the area."

"Well," Squirrelpaw mewed, "Why didn't you say so?" The dark ginger she-cat padded out of the cave, and into the trees beyond, giving the tabby tom no choice but to follow.

Following Squirrelpaw was tiring, as the ThunderClan apprentice didn't wait for Brambleclaw, always darting after something before the warrior could catch up to her. When Brambleclaw finally found her, she was taking a drink from a stream, sides heaving. Brambleclaw crouched down beside her, confident she wouldn't race off again, and took his time drinking his fill.

"Dustpelt would be proud of you," Brambleclaw commented. Squirrelpaw looked up, surprised, green eyes wide.

"Really?" She asked, and Brambleclaw nodded.

"He would be proud of the way you noticed everything around you in this strange place," Brambleclaw told her, "like a warrior would."

Squirrelpaw stopped lapping up water and stared at him, looked shocked at this kind of praise from a cat that normally couldn't stand her.

Ignoring her expression, Brambleclaw continued, "When we get back to ThunderClan, I'll speak to Firestar about making you a warrior."

Squirrelpaw stared at him, then padded over to him, purring. "Thank you, Brambleclaw," she said softly, touching her nose to his cheek. The prickling feeling crept along Brambleclaw's spine, and her purred, touching his nose to hers. Squirrelpaw's green eyes widened with delight and surprise; hesitantly she rasped her tongue over his ear, and Brambleclaw touched his nose to her cheek.

A twig snapped behind them; Brambleclaw spun around, bristling in the face of this unknown enemy. He heard Squirrelpaw snarl, challenging whoever was there. As two dark forms slid out of the forest and their scent rolled towards him, Brambleclaw relaxed. Beside him, Squirrelpaw hissed and launched herself at the two, but Brambleclaw stopped her with a low growl. The two forms stepped out of the shadows, and Brambleclaw saw Squirrelpaw relax; Tawnypelt and Stormfur were no threat.

Both cats carried fresh-kill, and both looked amused. Brambleclaw looked at them before asking, "How is the prey?"

Stormfur set his rabbit down to answer, "Plentiful and well-fed. We could live here if we needed to."

"But would it feed four Clans?" Tawnypelt asked him.

Stormfur shifted, uncomfortable; he obviously hadn't thought about it. Seeing Stormfur's discomfort, Brambleclaw drew the attention away from the gray tom. "Why don't we go back to the cave and find Crowpaw and Feathertail?" He suggested. Nodding their consent, the other three cats followed the brown tabby tom back into the shadowed forest.

Sharing fresh-kill and sharing tongues was pleasant and soothing, and as the shadows in the cave lengthened, and the evening sky changed from orange to purple, the cats began to settle down for the night. Feathertail and Crowpaw were sleeping side by side, and Tawnypelt and Stormfur were curled up together. Brambleclaw curled up against a sleeping Squirrelpaw, but was unable to sleep. He got up and padded silently to the cave entrance, amber eyes glowing in the moonlight. As he watched Silverpelt appear, he thought about ThunderClan and his home forest. A familiar voice questioned, "Brambleclaw?"

Brambleclaw jumped; he hadn't heard his sister come up beside him. "Tawnypelt," he answered, sighing. The tortoishell she-cat sat down beside the brown tom and fixed him with a bright green stare.

When he said nothing else, she turned and watched the stars come out, one by one. Into the silence of the night, she asked, "Are you padding after Squirrelpaw?"

"What?" Brambleclaw exclaimed, startled by the end of the silence and the question that signaled it. He twisted around to stare at his sister, and she stared back, green eyes sharp. "Are you padding after Squirrelpaw?" She repeated, still watching him.

"No, Brambleclaw told her, trying to believe his own words.

Tawnypelt purred softly. "Brambleclaw," she reminded the tom, "I saw you and Squirrelpaw at the stream today."

Brambleclaw looked at her and looked away again. He stared out at the night sky, thinking. Turning back to Tawnypelt, he saw a triumphant look in her eye, as if she had been right about something.

Without another word, Tawnypelt got up, touched her nose to his cheek, and went back to curl up next to Stormfur.

_Squirrelpaw._ Brambleclaw looked at the dark ginger she-cat, and his fur grew hot again. Gazing at the night sky, the tom was surprised to find it was almost moonhigh. Brambleclaw got up, stretched, and sat back down, still having no interest in sleeping. Once again, another familiar voice caught his attention.

"Brambleclaw?" It was Squirrelpaw.

"Brambleclaw?" She questioned again, and Brambleclaw turned to look at her.

"Yes, Squirrelpaw?" He shot back.

The ginger she-cat stared at him, green eyes shining in the moonlight. She settled down next to him, and as Brambleclaw drew in her scent, a sense of contentment settled upon him, like the comfort of a soft mossy nest.

Squirrelpaw stared up at Silverpelt, then looked at Brambleclaw. "What did you dream about?" She asked softly.

Surprised, Brambleclaw looked down at the apprentice. "What?" He asked, puzzled. Then he remembered: The dream he had had the night before. That dream seemed moons ago now. Softly, he told Squirrelpaw about the mountains, the snow, and the mysterious cats.

After he finished, Squirrelpaw stared up at him with glowing green eyes. "So our next journey will take us there?" She asked eagerly.

Brambleclaw shifted, uncomfortable. "I don't know, Squirrelpaw," he told her, uncertain. "Sometimes dreams are just dreams."

Squirrelpaw looked disappointed for a moment; then she bounced up on all four paws. "But maybe it was StarClan who sent the dream?" She asked, green eyes bright.

Brambleclaw looked up at Silverpelt and sighed. "StarClan has its own time and reason for things," he told her, looking at the stars.

Squirrelpaw was silent, thing it over. Turning to Brambleclaw, she slyly asked, "Do you think Stormfur is padding after Tawnypelt?"

"Why do you ask that?" Brambleclaw asked in reply.

Squirrelpaw snorted. "Brambleclaw, anyone with eyes can see the way the two of them act."

Brambleclaw looked down at the apprentice, amber eyes bright. "You're very observant," he told her amused.

Squirrelpaw stared at him, eyes wide. "You don't have a problem with that?" She asked incredulously.

"Should I?" Brambleclaw asked innocently, amused.

Squirrelpaw hissed in exasperation. "Brambleclaw, they come from different Clans!"

"I know that," the tabby told the ginger she-cat, "but StarClan told me that in order to survive, four Clans must become one."

Squirrelpaw nodded slowly, understanding in her eyes. "So is that why you don't mind Stormfur padding after your sister?"

Brambleclaw nodded. "I trust Stormfur, even if he is from another Clan, and," he added, amber eyes gleaming, "Tawnypelt would have my ears if I suggested anything else."

Squirrelpaw let out a soft _mrrow_ of laughter at Brambleclaw's answer, and she got to her feet, green eyes sparkling with amusement.

Brambleclaw followed suit, stretching before turning to Squirrelpaw. She was already curled up in her nest, paws tucked under her, watching him.

The tabby tom padded silently over to the dark ginger she-cat, and touched his nose to her cheek before curling up next to her. Squirrelpaw's green eyes gleamed as she affectionately rasped her tongue over Brambleclaw's ear before dropping her head and closing her eyes.

Brambleclaw listened to her even breathing, enjoy the closeness, before giving himself to sleep and letting his dreams take him where they would.

Review please! Depending on how many reviews I get, I might post another chapter, or I might just leave this a one shot.

Two day until Warriors: The New Prophecy: Moonrise!

Purple Eyed Cat


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